Army Girl
by TheBigBadWolfxTheOncomingStorm
Summary: AU. In order to escape a marriage arranged by her father, Lucy joins the army. In the process she leaves her friends - and possible lover - behind. How do they cope? Will Lucy ever come home?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! So this is an idea that popped into my head and wouldn't leave me alone, so I figured I would write it. It's probably pretty OOC, but I hope that doesn't affect your decision on reading. So let me give you a little info on this:**

**Lucy's father is trying to marry her off to a random guy, and she decides to join the army to get out of it. **

**Ages in the beginning of the story: **

**EVERYONE IS 18 AND HAS JUST GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL  
**

**I made them all the same age for a reason, ok? So they were all together and stuff. **

**This is not based off of any specific military defense! This is my "made up" military for modern day Magnolia/Fiore. **

**Lastly, please excuse any grammar/spelling errors. I wrote this while doing homework, and it's late at night, so I wasn't entirely focused. BUT THE IDEA WAS DRIVING ME CRAZY SO I JUST HAD TO WRITE IT!**

**I hope you enjoy reading!**

* * *

"Say what?" Gray looked at her like she had three heads.

"I'm going to join the army," she was facing all of her friends; Gray, Erza, Levy, and Natsu. The people who meant the most to her.

"But – Luce. You can't," Natsu's eyes were tearing, and she hated to see them all like this.

"I'm not going to be married off to some guy that I don't know. I have to do this, I can't explain it. It – it just feels right."

"I'm going with you then."

"No. You don't have to do that. Hell, I won't let you. Natsu, you've got a future! A free ride to college, and you'll probably get into the NFL. Don't throw your life away because of me."

"My life wouldn't be anything without you."

"I'll be fine. I promise."

"Lucy," Levy was crying. "Please."

"I'm sorry Levy. I'm going, I leave for training camp in three days."

"I respect your decision Lucy. But as you're good friend, I worry for your safety," Erza was speaking all proper, but on the inside she was crumbling.

"I love all of you guys, but this is the only way I can get away from my father. I'll come back, I swear I will."

* * *

Three months had come and gone in the blink of an eye. Lucy's training was completed, and she was being shipped out in two days. Natsu and Gray had gotten into a great college with a football scholarship, Levy was set on becoming a lawyer, and Erza wasn't quite sure yet. All of her friends swore they were going to spend every last second with Lucy. Not only that – they were going to get Natsu to confess.

The pink haired idiot was obviously in love with her, but he would never say it. Now with her going off to fight for their country, he might never see her again.

"Natsu," Erza gave him her famous death glare. "I swear, if you don't tell her, I will make sure you don't live to see the day she comes home."

"Y-Yes ma'am," he nodded shakily.

* * *

Lucy was in her uniform and was at the airport terminal with her friends. They had gotten special permission to walk her back, and all of them were trying not to break down. Erza's eyes were burning into Natsu's skull, but he couldn't find the courage to say anything.

"Attention passengers. Flight A730 will be boarding shortly," a voice came over the intercom, causing Levy to cry more.

"Levy, I'll be fine, ok? Don't make this any harder for me," Lucy was on the verge of breaking into sobs.

Everyone stood up, and said their goodbyes. Each one included a long hug with a side of tears. When she got to Natsu, the dam finally broke. He lifted her into his arms and held her tightly, his shirt got wet from her crying, but he didn't care.

"You've got to promise that you'll come back to me," he clutched onto her tighter, burying his face into the crook of her neck.

"I promise. You promise me to live your life, ok? That's what I'm going to fight for," she leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Ok," he agreed.

They stayed that way for several minutes, Natsu hugging Lucy's petite frame for dear life. He couldn't wrap his mind around the fact that his Lucy – his small, delicate Lucy – was going off to war. And there was nothing he could do to stop her.

When the final boarding call was announced, they broke apart.

"Luce, I've got to tell you something. I-" he stopped short when she put a finger to his lips.

"Tell me when I get back. I know it's important, but this will give me something to fight for. I'm going to come back to you so you can tell me," she gave him one last hug and turned to the others. "Bye," she whispered, afraid if she raised her voice any higher she would break.

"Goodbye, stay safe," they all said, and Natsu was just heartbroken.

Everyone watched while the plane made its way to the runway, and they stayed that way until it took off.

"She'll be fine Natsu, our girl is strong," Gray put a hand on his shoulder.

"No, you're wrong," he turned around, revealing the tears rushing down his face. "She's my girl," and he ran off. Gray tried to go after him, but Erza pulled him back.

"He needs to be alone," the look of pain in her eyes was visible, but Gray knew she was right.

Erza held Levy in her arms while the bluenette cried, and Gray was trying to be strong. But it was Lucy, dammit. And no one could bear the thought of the bubbly blonde never coming back.

* * *

It had been two weeks since she left, and Natsu hadn't been able to get out of bed. It was pathetic, really, but he just couldn't. It was like the sunshine in his life had disappeared.

He held a bottle of vodka in his hands and took a swig before crashing his head back into the pillow.

Someone was pounding on the door, but he didn't care.

"Natsu! If you don't open up, I'll kick your door down!" it was Erza, and she was serious.

After no response, she did just that. With Gray and Levy in tow, they made their way through Natsu's apartment and found him in bed.

"Come on, you've got to get up. What would Lucy say if she saw you like this?" Gray said.

He snapped his head in their direction at the mention of her name, his eyes ablaze in anger.

"Don't say her name!"

"Why, because it's painful? How do you think we feel? She's our friend too!" he shouted.

"You don't love her like I do!"

"I do too love her, she's like my little sister! I wanted to stop her from leaving just as much as you, but she's too damn stubborn to listen! It was her choice, she wanted to get away from her father. She told you to live your life, right? I'm pretty sure getting drunk in bed isn't living!"

"Gray's right, Natsu. As you're friends, we're here to get your ass out of bed," she grabbed the bottle of out of his hands, handed it to Gray, and picked up the moping young adult. He didn't protest, mainly because he knows what happens to anyone who defies Erza.

She took him to the shower, set him down, and stripped off his clothes. He didn't even flinch when his boxers came off, and Erza couldn't care less about what she saw. After turning the hot water on, she stared at him.

"If you're not clean in ten minutes, I'll have to do it for you," she picked up his clothes and left.

Slowly he showered off the stink of two weeks of not bathing, and wrapped a towel around his waist when he was done. Someone had changed his sheets on his bed, picked up all the dirty clothes and alcohol bottles, and left a fresh change of clothes on his dresser. He changed into the shorts and shirt, and walked into the kitchen. Erza was cooking something, Levy was cleaning up the dump of an apartment, and Gray was tending to an underfed Happy.

"Dude, I know you're depressed, but letting your cat suffer isn't right," he was coaxing food into Happy's mouth, the blue cat's ribs were showing now.

"Aye~!" Happy meowed, seeming to agree.

"Here," Erza set a plate of pancakes with eggs and bacon on the table. "Eat."

"I'm not hungry."

"I know you've probably hardly eaten, and you're going to sit down and eat," Erza glared at him. "Now."

He sat down and slowly picked at the food, Gray, Levy, and Erza were staring at him the whole time.

"Would you quit that?" he asked with a mouth full of bacon.

"Not until you're done," Gray answered.

A half hour later he finished, the normal Natsu would've taken less than three minutes.

"Drink," Erza set a tall glass of water in front of him, and he complied. "Now go brush your teeth."

"Ok, mom," he growled.

"Apparently, I have to be! Just because she's overseas doesn't give you the right to wither away and die!"

He didn't answer, he just went to the bathroom and brushed his teeth. He'll probably have a cavity or two after not tending to them for so long. After coming back out, Gray was on his laptop.

"What're you doing?" Natsu walked over to him.

"You would've seen it if you had been living like a normal person, but you haven't. So we came to make sure you were still alive, and now you get to see this," Gray clicked on an email. It was from Lucy.

"When did she send this?!"

"About a week ago. You were too busy drowning yourself in booze to notice," he clicked on the attachment, and a video opened up. Natsu snatched the laptop out of his hands, and impatiently waited for it to load. When it did, she appeared on the screen.

"_Hi guys!" she waved and smiled. "I hope you're all doing well, we've just gotten settled into camp. I don't have a lot of time, so I'll make this brief. Natsu, I want you to get your ass out of bed and stop moping. I know what you're doing mister, and I do not approve! Remember our promise? Don't break it, please. It's what's going to keep me going. Oh, and don't forget to feed Happy. _

_Gray, keep him in check would ya? Your unofficial little sister demands it. _

_Erza, keep both of them in check. Don't let them rip their heads off, I still want a family to come home to. _

_Levy, I'll keep working on my book if I have down time. But it's pretty busy around here. _

_I love and miss you all, and don't worry about me. If you don't live your lives, then what am I out here fighting for? I've got to go, I'll be in touch soon. Bye!" she smiled and waved, the video pausing on that image. She looked happy. _

"Does that convince you to not mope around here all day?" Gray asked, and Natsu slowly nodded. "Good, because we've got to leave for college in two weeks."

"She could've gone to college," he mumbled.

"With her father breathing down her neck to marry some guy? She wouldn't have been happy. Look at that smile, she looks like she is truly happy," Erza pointed to the frozen picture of Lucy.

"Erza is right, Lucy's father hardly knew she existed until she became of marrying age. She was miserable after she turned 18. Always meeting with a potential husband, but she kept refusing. Her father was about to force her into a marriage, but she found this as an escape," Levy agreed.

"How can she be happy when her life is on the line?!" he bit his lip to keep the tears from coming.

"I don't know, but we've got to be happy too. We'll make it through this," Erza patted him on the back, and he vowed that from this day, he wasn't going to cry anymore.

* * *

It was a year today. They had still gotten regular updates from Lucy, and they all sent emails back. Erza, Gray, Levy, and Natsu went to the same college. They hadn't picked out their majors yet, but they didn't have to. At least, not now.

Gray and Natsu were the stars of the football team, Levy was the top student in her lawyer classes, and Erza was the pride of the lacrosse team. It was still hard. It was hard not to start crying. It was hard to find the motivation to go on, because their motivation was half a world away.

But each time Lucy sent an email, they kicked themselves in the asses and trudged forward. They at least owed her that.

* * *

She still hadn't gotten leave, although her friends were desperately hoping for her to pop up unexpectedly and surprise the shit out of them. Now it was three years, and she was still ok. It was easier to think about her and not break down.

Natsu had chosen to major in finances. He hated to admit it, but he was really good with numbers. It was a backup plan in case something ever happened to his football career.

Gray, like Natsu, had chosen finances as well. They did this without each other knowing, and when they found out, all hell broke loose. And then that hell was put back in its cage by Erza.

Levy had written a book about what it was like to have her friend in the army, it was published and became popular. Her studies to become a lawyer were going well, but she couldn't help but miss her best friend.

Erza, surprisingly, had chosen to become a doctor. Erza and caring in the same sentence? Never heard of, but she was really good at it. Although the extra schooling would be difficult, she knew it would pay off in the end.

* * *

Six years.

Their ray of sunshine hasn't been home in over half a decade.

Gray and Natsu were in the NFL now. They were amazing rookies, and actually played every game.

Levy was a lawyer in a top law firm. She was really good at what she did and was highly requested.

Erza just finished medical school, and was a doctor now. Who would've thought?

Lucy sent regular updates, and they could see her mature over time. She was no longer that small, delicate flower. She was a soldier, a warrior. And she was a damn good one.

It was a regular practice for the boys, but then Erza came running out onto the field.

"Ma'am, you're not allowed to go out there!" someone was chasing her, thinking she was a crazed fan of some sort.

"I don't give a fuck!" she screamed, and kicked the man down. "Gray! Natsu!"

"What?!" they both ran over, and saw the panic in her eyes.

"Erza, what happened?" Gray asked.

"It's Lucy," she breathed.

Natsu stiffened immediately, and his heart might as well have stopped.

"Lucy's troop was ambushed, they haven't found any survivors."

And that's when his world came crashing down.

* * *

**Ok, so all of you know by now that Lucy hasn't gotten leave in six years. I don't know how long leaves are for actual soldiers, but I wrote it this way for a reason, ok? I'm actually still not sure about that, so I might end up changing it... Haha ;D Don't forget to follow/review/favorite. **

**Also: This story is based in Magnolia/Fiore, but I still put in the NFL. **

**Should I continue, should it be a one shot? Lettme know! **


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! Did I scare ya? Don't worry, there was no way in hell that was a one shot. So, here's somethings that you need to know:**

**The rankings of people in this chapter are based off of the US Army's rankings and how long they take to achieve. Lucy starts off as a Second Lieutenant, that's the entry class of all soldiers. Well, that's what the internet told me anyways. The rankings are the only thing that comes from the US Army, everything else I made up. **

**Please excuse any spelling/grammar errors. I read over this a bunch of times, but I am only a mere human, and we are not perfect. **

**On to the chapter!**

* * *

Lucy had just finished recording her video, and she sighed once it was done. She really missed them all, it broke her heart to think that she made them cry.

"Hey, Blondie," a guy walked over to her, he was a First Lieutenant. "If you're done, we've all got families that we want to send videos to."

"Sorry," she quickly hit send on the computer. "I just miss them a lot."

"Yeah, we all do. It's especially hard once you first get here. My names Josh Samuels," he extended his hand.

"Lucy Heartfilia," she shook it firmly.

"I know. We've heard a lot about you. Top of your class in training, not to mention the heiress of the Heartfilia family. What's a little princess like you doing out here at war?"

"I'd rather not talk about it," she clenched her jaw.

"Alright, family issues, I get it. But since we're all going to be spending a lot of time together, you'll realize that you can open up to us more. We are kind of like a family, so to speak."

"Thanks."

"Now, go report to Captain Thompson for further orders."

"Yes, sir," she saluted, and ran off towards the Captain.

* * *

Two weeks later, they found themselves on the front line. Gunshots left and right, blood spilling wherever you looked. Lucy hit the deck, trying to prevent her organs from being blasted out. She held her gun steady, aiming for the enemy. Without hesitation, she fired.

That was the first time she killed someone.

Three hours later, the tanks started rolling in. And they weren't from their side.

"First Lieutenant Samuels!" she crawled over to him, and shielded him from gun fire. "You're hurt!"

"It happens Heartfilia, now get back out there!" he was clutching his lower abdomen, a bullet hit between his paddings. He fired his gun at someone while speaking.

"There's no way we can stop them if we can't take out those tanks! I've got an idea, but you have to trust me."

"No. You're just a newbie Second Lieutenant, you don't know what to do!"

"There's a slight gas leak on one of them, if someone were to throw a grenade then-"

"I said no! It's too risky!"

"I don't give a damn! If we don't do something, everyone will die!"

"Then we die with honor. We fought to protect our country, our loved ones!"

"You've got people you want to get home to, right? So do I. Now give me that damn grenade."

He pulled one out of his belt, and handed it to her.

"You've got once shot. Don't screw it up," he then cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted. "Fall back!"

The rest did as they were told, and Lucy held onto the explosive and ran straight into the line of fire.

"Heartfilia!" she heard Captain Thomas call her, but she ignored him.

The bullets hit her padding and stopped in their tracks. One grazed across her cheek and she hissed, the blood quickly rushing out. Another hit in the thigh, and she gripped in in pain. A slight cry escaped her lips before pushing forward. Then she saw it, the slight gas leak. She could smell the fumes. Enemy soldiers were running towards her, but she just smirked.

"Go to hell," she pulled the pin out, and threw the grenade. It hit its target, lodged between the metal of the tank that was damp with fuel. Then she turned and ran, as fast as she could while ignoring her burning thigh. She counted the seconds until detonation, and threw her body to the floor. The explosion turned into a major one, the entire tank went up in flames. It caused a chain reaction, and all of the tanks were destroyed along with most of the enemy. Her body was thrown back, and she curled into the fetal position. As pathetic as it sounded, it protected her body's major organs.

It was like everything was in slow motion. She couldn't match people's words to their lips, in fact, she could hardly hear them at all. She recognized Captain Thomas shaking her, trying to get her eyes to focus. Her head felt like it was going to implode, and she couldn't think straight. The last thing she remembered was being lifted up into someone's arms.

* * *

She stirred slightly, hers eyes going back and forth in her sockets. Like she was reliving something.

"Heartfilia, can you hear me?"

That voice, why was it familiar? Was it Jake? Jacob? Julian? Josh! It was Josh! The last thing she remembered was being on the ground, and since when did the ground have a pillow?

"Come on, open your eyes, Heartfilia."

She obeyed, and quickly shut them when the light hit her pupils. Then she tried again, slower this time. Her vision was blurry at first, but then she could see her surroundings. She was inside a medical tent, and Josh was staring at her.

"You're finally awake, took you long enough. How are you feeling?"

"I'm alright," she lied.

"That's the world's biggest lie. Here, take these," he handed her some pills and water.

She swallowed.

"What's this?"

"Antibiotics. Make sure your leg doesn't get infected. You're gutsy, I give you that. But that was the stupidest moves I've ever seen."

"Wait - you got shot. Are you ok?!" she looked him over frantically.

"Relax, the bullet didn't hit anything major, I'm perfectly fine. You should be worried about yourself. You've got a concussion, and you're lucky you didn't get brain damage or have a limb blown off."

"Sorry."

"You saved everyone though. We wouldn't admit it, but we were badly outnumbered. Just don't try something like that again, ok?"

"No promises," she chuckled

* * *

About a year and a half has passed since she left, and Lucy had gotten used to life as a soldier. Captain Thomas, now Major Thomas, had called Lucy into a meeting.

"Sir," she saluted once she saw him.

"At ease, Heartfilia."

She put her arm down and stood perfectly straight, waiting for him to speak.

"I wanted to call you in here for a reason. Normally we would do this under better circumstances, but we cannot. I have made the recommendation to my superior that you be promoted to a First Lieutenant. He agreed. From this moment forward you are First Lieutenant Heartfilia," he handed her the official pin and certificate. "Congratulations."

"Thank you, sir. It is truly an honor," she saluted him again.

"You've earned it. Now, go trade places with Second Lieutenant Phillips for look out."

"Sir, yes sir!" she ran out, quickly placed the pin and paper with her things, slightly bragged about it to Josh, and traded places with the newbie.

"I'm here to relieve you," she grabbed her gun off of her back and held it at the ready.

"Thank you, Lucy," he saluted.

"That's First Lieutenant Heartfilia to you."

"My apologies, First Lieutenant Heartfilia," he saluted, and ran off.

* * *

Two years since her promotion had come and gone. That made it three and a half years since she saw her friends. She regularly sent them updates, as well as told them about her promotion. They congratulated her, and told her to be safe. Currently, her troop was back at main camp. Some sort of awards ceremony or something, and they were taking a quick break from fighting.

Everyone was in their fancy uniform, as Lucy called it, with the pins and awards on their jackets. Lucy's First Lieutenant Pin was on hers along with some high ranking awards. She remembered the day that got her one of her awards. They were on the front line again, and a one of the new comers was about to engage in hand to hand combat with the enemy. She knew that kid couldn't handle it, he had been an emotional train wreck since he had gotten there. She couldn't stand there and watch him die.

She sprinted over to him, and told him to run. He did, and she got tackled by the soldier. They went at it with hand to hand, until Lucy managed to get the upper hand. As soon as she saw her moment, she shot him dead. That, along with the stunt she pulled when she first got there, and a few others, made her the clear choice for a handful of awards, even though she believed she didn't deserve them.

Everyone watched people get promoted, people receiving awards, it was a nice break for a change. Then her name was called, and she furrowed her eyebrows together. Slowly, she stood up and walked towards the stage, where she was promoted from First Lieutenant to Captain.

Something else she felt she didn't deserve.

* * *

Two years after she was promoted to Captain, she was then promoted to Major. That makes it five and a half years. She had never requested leave, there were other people who needed to see their families more than she did. No matter how much she missed them.

* * *

Six months later had made it six years. Lucy was at camp with her troop, they were telling each other stories to escape from their hell hole for a bit. Josh, also a Major, was there. Major Thomas had been promoted to a higher rank and was no longer with their troop. There was a guy named William, he was a First Lieutenant, Tristian, he was a Second Lieutenant, Cameron, he was a Captain, and Adam, he was a Second Lieutenant.

Lucy was telling them about her friends, and they were all listening.

"So now Natsu and Gray are in the NFL, playing for Fairy Tail. Erza is a doctor, and Levy is a lawyer. That's my family."

"I've got a little girl back home," that was Cameron, he was older than Lucy by some. "She writes me letters and sends me emails constantly. It's what keeps me sane."

"My friends all send me care packages every few months. It keeps you going, knowing that you're protecting who you care about," Lucy added.

"My girlfriend is pregnant," Tristian blurted out. "She just told me in her last email. I guess it happened right before I left."

"I'm sorry," Lucy said. "That's got to be tough."

He just nodded. Poor kid, he was only about nineteen or twenty.

"I miss my boyfriend," Adam sighed. "I feel so bad for leaving him. But, I feel like I was meant to do this. You know?"

"I get it," Josh spoke up. "But if he really loves you, he'll understand. You fight to keep him safe, to go home to him."

"I think that's what keeps us all going," William added. "That we'll somehow made it back to them."

Everyone agreed. They were like their own small family, they all cared about each other.

"Say, Lucy," Cameron turned to her. "You haven't been home in six years, how come you haven't requested leave?"

"There are other people who need it more than I do. I don't mind, really," she gave them a not so convincing smile.

"You've never been a good liar," Josh glared at her. "I can see right through that one."

"Shut up," Lucy sat up straight and listened closely.

"Lucy, you know-" he started again, but she held her hand up.

"Everyone, quiet," she ordered.

Josh knew that face, Lucy had ridiculously good hearing. Something was out there.

"Ambush!" she yelled, and everyone scattered.

"Josh, take Tristian and Adam, get out of here! I'll get William and Cameron, go!"

He nodded, and they went their separate ways.

But that didn't stop the grenade that landed right in front of Lucy.

"Grenade, stand clear!" she grabbed it, and threw it into the air. A second after it left her hand, it exploded.

"Keep moving!" they were running right in the open, but they had nowhere to go.

"Damn bastards," she cursed and pulled the gun off of her back. With a quick glance behind her, she shot three enemies dead. That was nothing compared to the swarm coming. She unclipped something from her belt and pulled out the pin before throwing it towards the enemy. The grenade went off, and several other explosions happened.

"What's that?" William asked.

"They've got grenades on them apparently. It's a chain reaction. Keep moving!"

They ran a few more miles, and the enemy stopped chasing them after they skidded down a steep hill.

"What the-" Lucy stopped and looked up at them, they were retreating.

"Did we win?" Cameron asked hopefully.

"No," she took a step forward, and her eyes widened. "Watch o-" she couldn't finish, the ground started exploding underneath them. "Land mines!" she sprinted away from the blast, her comrades hot on her heels.

They didn't know where the trap started or stopped, so there was no way of telling when they were in the clear. But they were going back the way they came, so they were bound to be out of range at some point.

"Guns at the ready, they'll be trying to block us off!" she held her gun tightly, just itching to pull the trigger.

"Yes sir!" they both shouted.

Another mine went off, and Lucy's pant leg caught on fire.

"Damn it!" she kept running though, they couldn't stop.

The fire burned against her skin, it was eating away at her flesh. When she couldn't take it anymore, she dropped to the ground and rolled. William and Cameron swatted at the fire to put it out, and her pants were left smoking.

"It's bad, Lucy," William looked at her leg. It was at least a 3rd degree burn and was heavily bleeding.

"I don't care. Are you guys alright?"

"Just a few minor burns and cuts, but we're fine," Cameron said.

"Where the hell did they come from?" Lucy tried to stand, but fell back down in pain.

"Are you stupid?" William shouted.

"We can't just sit here, we're sitting ducks!"

"She has a point," Cameron was looking at the hill for any movement.

"They can't see us, can they? I've got an idea," she pulled another grenade out of her belt. She pulled the pin and threw it towards the land mine area. Once it went off, a land mine did also. And another, and another, and another. "They're setting themselves off. Now they'll think we really died."

"How come that didn't happen before? We set a few off, so why didn't the others go off?" William helped Lucy get up, putting her arm around his shoulders.

"They might've been placed too far away from the others, we only set off two. I'm not sure. We need to get out of here though."

"And go where?" Cameron's eyes still didn't leave the hill.

"Back to camp."

"Won't they be waiting for us?" William looked at her.

"Not necessarily. We'll freeze to death if we stay out here though, I know that. And with my leg like this, it's gonna take us a while."

"Then let's move," Cameron started walking, William and Lucy slowly following behind.

No one even had time to process the land mine going off. The only thing Lucy knew, was that she was suddenly hundreds of feet in the air and crashing down into a fiery hell.

* * *

**Ok, so I've never written any fight scenes or war scenes before. I gave it my best shot, sorry if they're crappy. Other than that, what did you guys think? Huh? I know you want to tell me in the review box down below! Go on, leave a review, I dare you! Time for some shout outs!**

**AvrilHitachin - I give you a giant round of applause for following/favoriting this story about three seconds after I posted it. And I'm glad you like the story! I've changed it around though so that it is no longer based off of the US Army, so now the information isn't really inaccurate!**

**FairyTailGirl2 - Thanks! And that's for me to know, and for you to find out ;)**

**duncundog - Yay, I'm glad you want more! And I did forget about Levy, but I went back and added her in. Oopsies, sorry Levy! **

**MJ - Here you are, I hope you enjoy :D**

**Rivendell101 - Thanks for the criticism! I changed the story around though so that it is no longer based off of the US Army or the war the US is fighting and stuff. **

**TwerkingPandah - Wow, interesting name you've got there. It's cool! And I know what you mean, I am SO SO SO sick of those stories as well. I like writing Lucy as a kick ass soldier! Don't worry, there will definitely be more chapters :D**

**Guest - Hehe, did I scare ya? Sooorrrryyyyyy! Don't kill me please! If I'm dead, I can't write more chapters!**

**Oh and here's the ages/ranks of Lucy's troop: (they're all guys by the way, if you didn't figure that out...) **

**William - 1st Lieutenant - 21/22**

**Josh - Major - 26/27**

**Tristan - 2nd Lieutenant - 19/20**

**Cameron - Captain - 35ish **

**Adam - 2nd Lieutenant - 25/26**

**Lucy - Major - 24**

**I'll see you all on the flip slide ;D**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey, guess what? Guess. Come on! Guesssssss. Can't get it? I wrote you guys a new chapter - duh! Haha, hope you enjoy! **

**Please excuse any spelling/grammar errors ;)**

* * *

Natsu sat on the floor with his head in his hands and his knees pulled up to his chest. The TV was set to the news channel where they were reporting on the ambush. Gray isolated himself in his own corner, and Erza was punching the crap out of Natsu's punching bag. Levy would've been there too, but she was out of town on business. Gray called her to tell her, and they all heard her sobs on the other end of the phone.

Two days. It had been two days and they still hadn't found anyone. But they hadn't found any bodies either, so that gave them some hope. No one had slept or eaten in two days either. They just couldn't.

A knock on the door made everyone's head snap in that direction.

No.

NO. NO. NO. NO. NO.

Did they come to deliver the letter that Lucy had died in action? Did the news channel not know yet, or were they not allowed to say anything?

Erza hesitantly went towards the door, afraid that if she opened it their worst fears would come true. Natsu's and Gray's eyes were watching intently, and she gulped before turning the door handle. She breathed a huge sigh of relief when it was just Lisanna, captain of the Fairy Tail cheerleaders. The silver haired girl also had a crush on Natsu, and a big one at that.

"Oh Lisanna," Erza breathed. "It's just you."

"Erza? What are you doing here? And what do you mean 'It's just you'?"

"I just thought… you were someone else. Natsu, Gray, and I are dealing with a personal issue. May I ask what business you have at Natsu's apartment?"

"After he ran out with you and Gray at practice, I was worried about him. He wouldn't answer any of my calls or texts, I thought something had happened," she peeked behind Erza to see Natsu curled in a ball against the wall. "Natsu! Are you alright?!"

"Look, now's not the best time. Come back later, ok?" Erza tried to close the door, but Lisanna stopped her.

"No, I'm worried! Tell me what's going on!"

Erza was about to protest, but Natsu spoke up for the first time in two days.

"It's alright, Erza. You can tell her," it was hoarse and jagged, the lump in his throat was immense. He swore he would never cry again, but he was having a hard time not breaking down.

"Come in," Erza stepped aside, and Lisanna slowly walked in.

"We've got a friend in the army," she stated, and Lisanna's eyes widened. "Her troop was ambushed two days ago. They haven't found any survivors yet."

"Oh my god," the cheerleader ran over to Natsu and pulled him into a hug. "Natsu, I'm so sorry."

He ripped himself out of her arms and stalked off to his room, slamming the door loudly behind him.

"Don't take it personally. He needs to be alone," Erza placed a hand on her shoulder.

Between Levy, Erza, Natsu, and Gray; Erza was definitely their rock. She hardly ever cracked. She had to stay strong for the others, she couldn't let them see her be weak. No matter how much she wanted to curl into a ball of depression and never see the light of day again.

"Who is this person? What do they mean to Natsu?" Lisanna asked quietly, still staring down the hall where his room was.

"Her name is Lucy Heartfilia. And it's not my place to tell you Natsu's relationship with her."

"He's never talked about her before."

"It's too painful for him, for all of us. It got easier with time, but she hasn't been home in six years. We all still have trouble not crying when someone mentions her name."

"She's really important to him, isn't she?"

Erza nodded, and she could see the disappointment in Lisanna's eyes.

"I see," she sighed. "Look, I'll stop trying to be more then friends with him. But, as his friend, I'm concerned about his wellbeing. And yours too, and that includes you Gray," she shouted towards the corner of the dining room, and he just waved his hand in acknowledgment. "Just – just let me know if you guys need anything, ok? I can bring over food if you want."

"Thank you for understanding, Lisanna. You're a really nice person, and any guy would be lucky to have you, it's just that – if you could see those two together… You'd know they were meant for each other," Erza smiled sympathetically.

"I'll be back with some dinner later, and don't even try to protest! You guys need to eat," she let herself out, leaving Erza, Gray, and Natsu to wait for any news.

* * *

Lucy was vaguely aware of the fact that she was alive – at least she thought she was alive. Something heavy was crushing her legs, and it was agony on her left leg that got burned. Her throat felt like it was stuffed with cotton, it was so dry. She didn't even have any saliva in her mouth. She could hear voices and maybe a helicopter.

"We... Them… Heart… Alive…" those were the only things she could catch.

Someone lifted the massive weight off of her and pulled her out. She was picked up and moved closer to the loud noise. She was certain at this point it was a helicopter. The person who was holding her set her down on something, and people immediately began stripping her clothes off. Needles were pushed into her skin, and they started moving after a few more minutes. Then she fell back into unconsciousness.

* * *

Natsu, Gray, and Erza were slowly picking at the casserole Lisanna brought over. The news still played on the TV, but it was just the same report over and over again. That was, until the breaking news sign came on the screen. A young woman appeared afterword's in a news casting room.

"_Breaking news. Survivors of troop X920 that was ambushed two days ago have been found. We are waiting for their identities to be released." _

And then it went back to the regular news cast.

They all ran over to the TV to wait. No one said a word.

**~Three hours later~**

The regular news reporters began talking about the ambush, and a man in his 30's put his hand up to his ear. He was listening to his mic.

"_Attention ladies and gentlemen. Sorry to interrupt, Chad. The identities of the survivors of troop X920 have been released. Major Josh Samuels, Second Lieutenant Tristan Oliver, Second Lieutenant Adam McMartin – these soldiers are in stable condition. The following soldiers are in critical condition and may not make it through the night – First Lieutenant William Knight, Captain Cameron Edwards, and Major Lucy Heartfilia. _

_It seems the second group of soldiers in critical condition were run into a trap of land mines. Major Heartfilia did all she could to get them out, but without being able to detect them, it was futile. Reports say that a mine detonated directly under Major Heartfilia, First Lieutenant Knight, and Captain Edwards. _

_We send our prayers to them and their families, and we can only hope they pull through. We will have more details on this story shortly." _

Natsu finally broke. He punched the wall and screamed, the tears poured out of his eyes. Gray and Erza punched opposite sides of the punching bag, uncontrollably crying the whole time.

**~One week later~**

Lucy groaned as she started to wake up, the steady beeping of machines all around her. She slowly opened her eyes, and rapidly blinked to clear her vision. She was in a hospital. Both of her legs were in casts, most of her body covered in bandages, and she had a massive eye booger. She got rid of it with her good hand – which was her right hand – since entire left arm, from the shoulder to the tips of her fingers, was in a cast.

She tried out her voice, only to get a scratchy and inhuman sound out. Looking around, she saw a call button. She pressed it, and waited. A nurse came in shortly after. She had short blue hair which reminded her of Levy, but with dark blue eyes. She was probably Lucy's height.

"You're awake! Thank goodness!" the nurse smiled and wrote something on a chart. "I'm Phoebe, your nurse. I'm glad to see you're ok, Major Heartfilia. You must be thirsty, hold on," she ran out and came back with a cup of water. With Phoebe helping her, Lucy gulped it down, along with three others.

"Thank you," there was her voice!

"My pleasure. Let's see, do you remember what happened?"

"We were at camp," she furrowed her eyebrows in concentration. "There – there was an ambush. I took Cameron and William, Josh took Adam and Tristan. We separated, and-" she paused, clenching her eyes shut. Then the memory hit her like a ton of bricks. "Land mines. We ran into land mines! William and Cameron, are they alright?!"

"William lost his lower right leg, and Cameron broke his spine. They have burns and broken bones as well. It is undetermined if Cameron will ever walk again, but they will survive."

Lucy shook her head, tears brimming in her eyes.

"No! William, he's not even my age – to lose part of his leg... And C-Cameron! He has a daughter! He has to walk again!" she started hyperventilating. "It's all my fault. I'm the one who said we should go back. If we went the other way then none of this would've happened. It's all my fault!"

"Major Heartfilia, calm down!" Phoebe grabbed her shoulders to stop her from thrashing. "Calm down! It's not your fault!"

Phoebe had to sedate Lucy, as she couldn't calm down. She woke up six hours later, and the doctor came in to see her. He looked to be in his 50's and had salt and pepper hair. Lucy had dried tears on her cheeks, and her eyes were red from silently crying.

"Major Heartfilia?" a man said softly, and she shifted her gaze to him. "My name is Dr. Nathan Matthews, I performed your operations."

"Operations?"

"I see they haven't told you. You shattered your left arm, hand, and shoulder; we had to reset the bones. A few ribs are cracked. Your left leg is broken in three places and severely burned, as are other parts of your body. Your right leg is broken in one place. You're lucky though, you didn't get any damage to your face. But you do have a nasty concussion. You'll make a full recovery, but you will have to stay in here for a while."

"When can I get back out on the field?"

"I'm not sure if you will ever go back out. You need physical therapy, and it is undetermined if you're going to suffer from PTSD or not. I'm sorry Major Heartfilia, but you might be respectfully dismissed from the army."

"They can't do that! I have to get back out there, they need me! I can't let them put their lives on the line while I just lay in bed! Please!" she begged, tears starting to fall again.

"It's not my call. That is for your superiors to decide. I'll have a nurse come in and give you some more pain medication," he walked out the door. The only thing he didn't mention was that her superiors would make a decision based on her behavior. But he couldn't tell her that, then she would act perfectly fine when she wasn't.

* * *

"_It has been confirmed that First Lieutenant William Knight, Captain Cameron Edwards, and Major Lucy Heartfilia are now in stable condition. We have no further details on their recovery time, if they will be sent home, or their injuries. We are thankful that they will be ok, and we cannot thank them enough for their service," the news reporter signed off, singling that it was the end of the broadcast. _

It was a week since they had found Lucy and the others, and now they knew she was going to be ok. Natsu sighed in relief, as did Gray and Erza.

"She wouldn't go down so easily anyways," Gray whispered, and the other two agreed.

"I'm still worried about her," Natsu was staring straight ahead, not making eye contact with anyone.

"We will just have to wait for her next email. The important thing is that she's going to be ok," Erza had a small smile on her lips. "I'm going to call Levy. Poor girl is still out of town," she got up and pulled out her cell phone.

"Do you think she will be sent home?" Natsu was barely audible.

"I don't know, but I can't help but hope she is. They said that they didn't have access to that kind of information, and Lucy probably isn't authorized to tell us. Or if she did, she wouldn't. You know she would just randomly pop up somewhere and surprise us."

"That sounds like her, doesn't it?" he smiled ever so slightly.

"Yeah," Gray got up and made his way towards the kitchen. "What do you want to eat? We've got to put some weight back on, or else we will get crushed at our next game."

"We can't let Sabertooth win, give me everything in the pantry! I'm all fired up!" he jumped over the couch and ran into the kitchen, back to his same old self.

**~Eight months later~**

"Ok Lucy, can you curl your fingers?" a nurse asked her.

She curled her fingers of her left hand with ease, and wiggled them for extra effect.

"I can move them fine, just like last week," she was annoyed with physical therapy at this point.

"I'm sorry, but we have to do this. And now let's check out your legs," they moved to the treadmill, and Lucy got on. The speed started at 1 and slowly went up until it was at a running pace.

"I'm fine, I don't understand why I can't go back out!" she groaned after the treadmill stopped.

"We just have to make sure. You get the news today, don't you?"

Lucy nodded.

"Well, I wish you the best of luck. Everything looks fine, you have 95 – 100% mobility in your hand, arm, and shoulder. Almost like it never happened. Your legs are good as new. The only thing left to show is the scars."

"I don't mind those," she looked at the faint burn marks on her hand, and the scars of the surgery. Her left leg was covered in scars from the burns, and her torso had a scar as well. The rest of her body had some scars, but those were sure to fade. There were none on her face though. She was really lucky. Who falls hundreds of feet into a fire and manages to recover with nothing but scars?

"Major Heartfilia?" a man in a uniform came in, and Lucy immediately saluted him.

"Sir!"

"At ease. I just received word on your status. You are to…"

* * *

**Should Lucy stay? Should she go home? It's now been almost 7 years! Oh, and I guessed on her recovery time. I figured eight months sounded about right, don't cha think? If you guys think that's absurd, lettme know. I'll be happy to change it! I tried not to make her injuries too over the top, but that sounded about right for falling a few hundred feet in the air and down into flames... Time for some shout outs!**

**Manamix777 - She's not dead! Woo! I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**

**AvrilHitachin - Awww, you're gonna make me cry. Pull it together, self! Thank you for saying such wonderful things, I'm glad you like the story :D**

**Person - You're going to make me cry too! Who's cutting the damn onions?! It means a lot to me that you love this story and think it's unique. Thank you!**

**SkyFairies - You wanted more NaLu? You got some! There will be even more in future chapters! **

**U don't say333 - I hope you like the chapter! **

**Naeda Beasly - [Chapter 1] - Thanks! I'm glad you like the format :D [Chapter 2] - I'm glad you think it isn't crappy, cause I put a lot of work into those scenes! I'm glad you can't forget it, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! **

**TwerkingPandah - *returns hug* YAYYY! I'm glad you love this story! And yeah, Lucy's totally bad ass now ;D I'm happy to be original anytime, I hate copying people... **

**Dark-Otaku-One-Of-Many - Here ya go! I hope it is still good!**

**Guest - I'm glad you love it! And I'll keep updating, no need for death threats... hehe... **

**Thanks for reviewing and reading! I love you guys! See you next chapter :D  
**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey, sorry I didn't update yesterday. I was sick :( But anyways, here's your new chapter! I hope you all enjoy, and sorry its a bit on the shorter side. **

**I've got another NaLu story called "Pink Meets Blonde" feel free to check it out! **

**Please excuse any spelling/grammar errors. I read over it a bunch of times, but you never know. **

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"You are to stay in this hospital."

"Sir, what are you saying?"

"When you went in for the full body MRI they found something in your head. We're not entirely sure. You are to remain here and undergo further testing. Then you, once you're stable, we will make a decision."

"What do you mean? Is there something wrong with my brain?"

"We're not certain. It seems when you fell you had a hairline fracture on your skull, but we weren't able to detect it. You probably confused the pain for the concussion. It's all healed now, but we have concerns that there is further damage."

"Are you suggesting brain damage?"

"Possibly. The doctors have ordered a CAT scan and another MRI for this afternoon."

"I see. Thank you for updating me, sir."

"It's no problem. But I want to you know that it is a major possibility that you will be going home. Please prepare yourself for that."

She nodded, saluted the man, and then he left.

"I'm so sorry Major Heartfilia," the nurse put a hand on her shoulder.

"No, it's fine… Can we resume the physical therapy?"

"Yes, come this way," she led her over to a machine.

Lucy's mind was elsewhere though. She couldn't stand to go back and leave everyone behind, it would crush her. But her friends… she hasn't seen them in almost seven years. She couldn't tell them of her condition, they were already worried enough. The only thing she could do was wait to see the results of the tests.

**~The next day~ **

"Major Heartfilia," Dr. Matthews came in her room. "We have the results of your CAT scan and MRI."

"What's wrong with me?"

"The impact you received when you fell has left you with slight brain damage. It's nothing major, you wouldn't even notice it."

"But?" she urged him to continue.

"If you were to get hit again, it would probably be over with. The only thing you can do is to rest. I'm sorry, but we're sending you home."

Tears slide down her cheeks as she closed her eyes and bit her quivering lip.

"You're going to be ok. The thing you can look forward to is seeing your friends and family again. Just think how happy they'll be to see you," he gave her an encouraging smile.

"When do I leave?"

"You're not quite stable yet, we want to keep you for a few more months just to be sure."

"And how long is a few months?"

"About four."

"Four?!"

"I'm sorry, but with an injury like yours, we can't take any risks. You want to keep all of your memories and motor functions, don't you?"

"Yes sir," she sighed.

"I know it's going to be rough, but you'll be alright."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. Now get some rest," he walked out of her door, and Lucy mentally prepared herself for four more months in this hell hole.

**~Two months later~**

"I'm going to kill myself. I've been in here for nine months, I'm going to kill myself!" she paced back and forth in her room, trying to stop her eyebrow from twitching. "On top of that, I've been lying to my friends back home! They think I'm still recovering and then I'll go back out onto the field, but that's a lie! I'm going home in two months, I'm leaving everyone behind," her pace quickened and her breathing got rapid. "But, think about how happy they would be to see you Lucy. Gray, Erza, Levy, Natsu… Natsu! That's right, what did he want to tell me? How am I going to surprise them? It's got to be good, something they'll never see coming…"

She paced for a while longer until it hit her.

Now she's just got to make the arrangements.

**~One month later~**

"It's all set, Major Heartfilia. I think your friends will be quite surprised."

"I would hope so," she smiled.

* * *

Natsu just finished writing an email to Lucy about how they were going to face off against Sabertooth at the Super Bowl. He closed his laptop and sighed. God, he missed her.

"Natsu!" Gray burst into his apartment.

"What do you want?"

"Come on, time for training!" he grabbed Natsu by his shirt and pulled him out the door.

"But it's Saturday. Come on Gray, we've still got another month until the big game. Just let me go back to bed," he whined.

"Nope, now get in the car, Erza's waiting for us."

Natsu gulped and got in Gray's car, and they sped off to the football field.

**~Two weeks later~**

"Move it slow pokes! I'm the master of this team, and you've got to listen to me!" Laxus boomed, watching the players run through the obstacle course.

"Don't you mean coach?" Natsu asked.

"No, it's master. Now get moving Dragneel!" he yelled, causing Natsu to flinch and run away. "Fullbuster! If I don't see you moving faster in the next three seconds, you're going to get it!"

Gray picked up the pace, tackling the training dummy harder than before.

"That's better," Laxus huffed and crossed his arms.

**~One and a half weeks later~**

"Heartfilia," a man she had never seen before walked in her room. "You've been cleared to go. It's time for you to go home."

"Yes sir," she nodded.

He left to allow her to gather her things. She changed out of the hospital night gown and into her army uniform. She missed wearing it, and she was going to miss serving her country.

She walked out of the room to see her troop waiting for her, minus William and Cameron. They had been sent home a while back, respectfully dismissed. William had gotten a prosthetic leg, and Cameron was in a wheel chair. It was Josh, Tristian, and Adam.

"You guys," she was about to cry, and they all pulled her in for a group hug.

"We're going to miss you, Lucy," Josh said.

"Me too. You guys stay safe, ok? I want to see you again."

"Don't worry about that, we'll definitely see you soon," Adam squeezed her.

"I just got back from seeing my girlfriend and my baby, but next time I'm home I'll let you know," Tristan gripped onto her tighter.

"You better. That goes for you two as well," they pulled back and smiled at each other.

"It was a pleasure working with you, Major Heartfilia," Josh extended his hand. "You're not leaving any of us behind. We all have tremendous respect for you."

Tristan and Adam nodded, and she gave a watery laugh.

"Thank you. It was an honor to work with you as well, Major Samuels," she shook his hand firmly, just like the day they met.

"Same goes for you, Oliver, McMartin," she shook both of their hands. "It was a pleasure."

"Thank you, Major Heartfilia," they both said in unison.

"Heartfilia, it's time to go," someone called out to her.

"Goodbye," she hugged each of them quickly, and they watched her walk away.

She couldn't help but feel like she was leaving her family behind. No – she couldn't do that. They wouldn't want her to fall into that depression again. She would stay strong for them, and for her friends that she was about to see for the first time in seven years.

* * *

After a day of traveling, Lucy finally made it back home. Well, she was actually in another state, but still.

People stared at her in her uniform, some of them smiled, some nodded, and some even saluted. One little girl ran up to her, and stopped her in the middle of the airport.

"Excuse me miss, but do you fight the bad guys?"

She smiled and crouched down to her knees, now on the girls' eye level.

"That's right. I fight the bad guys so you can stay safe."

"Wow," her eyes lit up. "You're like a super hero!"

"I guess you could say that."

"One day, I'm going to become a super hero, just like you!"

"Is that so? You would make your mommy and daddy very proud then."

"You think?"

"Mmhm," she nodded. "Speaking of which, where is your mommy?"

"She's over there," the girl pointed to a woman by another gate talking to the person at the desk.

"What's your name?"

"Stephanie."

"Nice to meet you Stephanie, my name is Major Lucy Heartfilia. Let's get you back to your mommy, ok?"

"Ok," she giggled, and Lucy walked Stephanie back over to her mom.

"Excuse me," Lucy said, and the lady looked at her.

"Stephanie, were you bothering this young lady?" she looked at her daughter and then back to Lucy.

"Not at all. She was just wondering about me being a soldier."

"Thank you, I'm sorry that she caused you trouble."

"It's not a big deal. Have a good day," she started to walk away, but then the lady called out to her.

"Miss!"

"Yes?" Lucy turned around.

"Thank you for your service!"

"You're welcome," she smiled, and continued walking.

Once she made it out of the airport, she got a cab to the hotel. She just had to lie low for one day, that's when the event took place.

When they got to the hotel, she stepped out of the car and went to pull out her wallet.

"No, I can't accept that miss. You've done enough, thank you for your service."

"Oh, thank you sir," she got her bag out of the trunk and he nodded to her then drove off.

She walked into the hotel, checked in, and went up to the third floor. After locating her room, she went inside and set her stuff down.

"Just have to stay out of sight until tomorrow," she breathed.

Lucy changed out of her uniform and into some regular clothing, and decided to sit out on the balcony. She couldn't go anywhere, if she ran into them it would totally ruin the surprise.

The cool night air was refreshing, and she stared at the city below.

"It's nice to know that I kept them all safe," it comforted her to think that she did some good while she was out there. She squinted her eyes when she saw a young woman go into an alley between two buildings. Three men followed her in, and Lucy grit her teeth.

"I can't believe I put my life on the line for them," she seethed, and jumped off the balcony. Landing in a squat, she ignored the stares she got from the few people that were out. She ran across the street and into the alley, only to see the three guys holding the young girl against the wall.

"Hey!" she screamed, getting their attention. "Leave her alone!"

"Look boys, we've got another play toy," one of them laughed.

"Damn, her boobs are huge. What size are you sweet heart? Double D? G?" two of them made their way towards her.

"How about we have some fun?" the one of the right pulled out a knife.

"I'm warning you now, let her go," she clenched her fists.

"You think you can take us? That's cute," he jabbed the knife at her, and she easily blocked it. With a few moves, it was out of his hand and he was on the ground. She turned to the other one, and knocked him out with a series of punches.

"I'll say it one last time, let her go!" she ran towards the girl pinned up against the wall. The guy had his pants and boxers off, trying to get the girl's skirt off.

Lucy ripped the guy off of the girl, and beat him up. He was out cold in less than a minute. The girl had slid down the wall and was hysterical.

"Are you alright?" she kneeled down to the girl, who was shaking.

"Yeah, I-I think so."

"Come on, let's get you up," she pulled the girl up to her feet and hugged her, trying to calm her down. "You're alright now."

"Thank – thank you, f-for saving m-me."

"It's no problem. Now, why don't you tell me your name?"

"Lisanna."

* * *

**How was it? Probably not my best chapter, but I was having a hard time trying to figure out what to come up with. I really hope it was alright. Here's some shout outs!**

**SkyFairies - I'm glad you like it. And if I made them any longer, I couldn't end on any cliff hangers! But I'm pretty sure that 2,000 + words with an update basically everyday isn't bad. **

**FTlover - Yay, I'm glad you like it! I'm also glad I'm making your fangirl out, haha! I figured your death threats weren't serious, lol. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

**Allison - Yeah, I love giving you guys a good cliff hanger. I hope you enjoyed!**

**U don't say333 - She does, doesn't she? I hope you enjoyed!**

**Naeda Beasly - It's fun to leave you guys with a cliff hanger and watch you beg for more *grins evilly* Poor poor Lisanna, TOO BAD! IT'S NALU ALL THE WAY SO MOVE OVER, BITCH! ... did I get a bit carried away? I have nothing against Lisanna, but it's totally NaLu... **

**Dark-Otaku-One-Of-Many - Yup, they're the best ;D**

**AvrilHitachin - Awesome, I'm glad you like it! I just hope this one is alright... That's funny, I ride horses myself ;) **

**Person - No, you've got to make it! You've got to read the new chapters I post! Damn those onions, they sneak up on me as well... I'm glad you like the story, it's a relief to know that people like what you write! It just makes me want to write more :D**

**TwerkingPandah - Awww, thanks! I love you too, you're awesome! **

**FairyTailGirl2 - Yup, that's exactly what happened. Thanks for reviewing! **

**duncundog - Because it's fun ;3 Haha, I hope you liked it! **

**starfire - I'm glad you like the story! And I'm actually happy that I made you cry, lol! Hmm, that's a good thing to think about. What job Lucy will get and such... I've got an idea, but you won't find you until later ;) **

**I love you guys! Thanks for all the reviews, I'll see you next chapter ;D**


	5. Chapter 5

**Ssoorrryyyyyyyyy! Do you guys know how hard this chapter was to write? I hope its good enough, cause I put a lot of work into it. **

**Please excuse any spelling/grammar errors!**

**Is anyone else dying for the next episode of Fairy Tail? I don't read then manga, but I already pretty much know what happens. But gah, it's killing me! I'm worried there won't be another season, Fairy Tail just can't end! If it does I will sink into a hole of depression and never come out... **

**Fun fact: Without the author's note, this chapter is the exact same length as the last one. Crazy, huh?**

**Anyways, onto the chapter! **

* * *

"Well then, Lisanna, where were you heading?"

"M-my friends and I w-were going to get dinner, and I thought this would be a short cut."

"Are you staying at a hotel? I can take you back, you need to get cleaned up," Lucy was thankful for her training in the army. During her time there, she was in a lot of situations like this helping people.

"Y-yeah. It's that one over there, actually," she pointed to the hotel Lucy was staying at.

"Ok, let's go."

"How did you do it? I mean, those men…" Lisanna glanced behind her.

"Let's just say that I've had some training," Lucy smiled. "I haven't really been doing anything for a year, but I've still got it."

"I'll say," Lisanna looked to be back to normal, just a little jittery. "I can't thank you enough, you just came out of nowhere."

"I just happened to see it happening, and I couldn't stand it. People like that, they make me sick…"

Lisanna nodded, and they walked through the doors of the hotel.

"Excuse me," Lucy walked up to the lady at the front desk. "Could you call the police? Three men just attempted rape on this girl, they're unconscious in the alley over that way," she pointed.

"S-sure," the lady picked up the phone, and Lucy took Lisanna to the elevator.

"What floor?"

"Six."

They rode up to the sixth floor, and Lisanna led Lucy to her room.

"This is me. I can't thank you enough, really."

"It was no trouble. Just be careful, ok?"

"I will," Lisanna unlocked the door and stepped inside. Once it clicked shut, Lisanna's eyes widened. "Wait, what's your name?!" she yelled as she opened the door, but her savior was gone.

* * *

Lucy went back down to her room, and plopped herself on the bed.

"Ahh, so comfortable," she smiled, snuggling herself into the pillows. Slowly, she fell asleep.

* * *

The sunlight peaked through the curtains, and Lucy opened her eyes. Instead of waking up in a sleeping bag on the ground, she was in a real bed in a hotel. Looking over at the clock, she discovered it was already noon.

"Well, at least I slept through most of the day," she grabbed a change of clothes and went into the bathroom, eager to take a shower.

Once she stepped under the warm water, she couldn't help but laugh.

"I forgot how nice this was," she took her time, scrubbing away the last bits of the hospital and the airport. After she was done, she changed into a pair of sweatpants and a tank top.

It was now 12:30.

"I'll just order some room service then," she looked through the menu and her mouth started to water. "I'm pathetic, really."

Her order came up an hour later, and she dug in. First she had some of the hamburger, then some mac and cheese, then a bit of the quesadilla, and finally chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream to finish it off.

"Totally worth it," her stomach was completely full, and she was on the bridge of throwing up, but it was extremely satisfying.

"Ok, it's 2:00 now. Just got to hold out for another hour Lucy," she was nervous at this point. It has been seven years, she can't imagine how much everyone has changed.

To pass the time, she just watched TV. Which was driving her insane. Every time she looked at the clock it only seemed to have moved about a minute or two. Finally, after years of waiting, it was about time for her to get changed.

She put on her regular uniform, liking it much better than her fancy one. It was the one she wore around the airport, and the one she would wear in battle.

After pulling her hair into a ponytail, and putting her boots on, she stared out the peephole of the door. They were sending someone to get her. As soon as a man in a suit was about to knock on her door, she flung it open.

"Hi!"

"Major Heartfilia?"

"That's me."

"Come with me," he led her out of the hotel and into a car. They sat in the back while the driver drove.

"Thank you very much, sir."

"I should be thanking you. I want to start by saying thank you for serving this country, it's an honor to be speaking with you. Now, let's go over the plan," he explained. "I'm going to take you to a room where you will record the video, and then you will until its time."

"Easy enough," she said.

"We will be approaching our destination in about ten minutes."

"Alright," she stared out the window, trying to calm her racing heart.

"We're here," he got out of the car, and held open the door for her. "Follow me."

She did as she was told, and he led her through a series of hall ways and door. He walked her inside and she looked around.

"Here we are, these people here will help you out," he walked out the door, and Lucy turned around to see three men.

"Hi," she waved.

"Ok, so stand here," a man that looked a little older than Lucy led her to a spot in front of a camera. "We'll give you a signal, and just start talking."

The camera turned on, and they gave her the signal.

She smiled, and began recording her message.

* * *

"Listen up, if we don't win, you guys aren't going to see tomorrow. Am I clear?!" Laxus yelled in the locker room, and everyone nodded. "Good. Play time is in fifteen minutes, do whatever until then," he huffed and walked out the door.

Natsu and Gray were changing into their padding. Natsu's eyes were glazed over, like he was thinking about something.

"I wish she was here," he sighed.

"She would've loved to see this game. Don't worry, we'll tell her all about it," Gray slapped him on the back, and started taking off his jersey.

"Dude," Natsu looked at him.

"Dammit! I don't know why I do that!" he put it back on, and then put on his shoes.

"Erza and Levy are in the VIP stands, right?"

"Of course. Lucky for Erza, she can get all the strawberry cake she wants."

"Let's just hope they don't run out," Natsu muttered, causing Gray to sweat drop at the thought of it.

"You heard that Lisanna almost got raped last night, right?"

"Yeah, Mira told me. I'm glad she's ok."

"Apparently a girl came flying out of nowhere, beat the guys up, and walked Lisanna back to the hotel."

"Well, whoever she was, I'm thankful she was there."

"Me too bro," Gray said, then Laxus came barging back in.

"Come on, and don't disappoint me!"

"Show time," Natsu grabbed his helmet. "I'm all fired up!"

* * *

After the national anthem was sung, it was time for the coin toss.

Both teams were standing at the center of the field, a ref between them. He tossed the coin, and held it in his hand.

"Fairy Tail gets it!" he announced, showing that the coin landed with the Fairy Tail symbol on top.

"Haha!" Natsu stuck his tongue out at Sting, the star of Sabertooth, who mumbled something and crossed his arms.

"Ladies and gentlemen, can I have your attention please," the announcer came on, and everyone grew silent.

"It has come to our attention that members of the Fairy Tail team, Natsu Dragneel and Gray Fullbuster, have a dear friend overseas in the army," he began, and Natsu tensed up. "We reached out to Major Heartfilia, and she requested that we pass this video along. Turn your attention to the monitor."

Natsu stared at the monitor, waiting for something to happen. It lit up, and Lucy appeared on the screen.

"_Hey! How's it going? Long time no see! I heard you two were playing off in the Super Bowl, and you didn't think I would let that slide by me, did you? Natsu, Gray, you better win. Sabertooth, you better give them a good run for their money. I miss you guys, and I wish I could be there. Duty calls though! I want to hear all about the game in your next email, ok? I've got to run, but I know you'll do great. See ya!" _

It was short, sweet, and to the point. Natsu's eyes got teary, but no one called him out on it.

* * *

Lisanna was with the rest of the cheer leaders on the side lines, her eyes not believing what she was seeing on the screen. That girl, it was the same one who saved her! That was Natsu's Lucy! She was here!

"Oh my god," she couldn't stop herself from grinning, tears pricking her eyes. Because she knew something that no one else knew yet.

Major Heartfilia was home.

* * *

Lucy was taken to the announcer's booth. It was high above the field where no one could see her. It was also the perfect view. She sat in a cushy chair and watched the game start. Natsu was immediately on the offensive, like he always is, running with the ball into Sabertooth's territory. No one could catch up with that fast bastard though. She smiled, when he scored the first touchdown in less than five minutes.

It went back and forth like this for a while, Sabertooth would score some, Fairy Tail would score some. Lucy was on the edge of her seat, cursing at Natsu and Gray for letting the ball get away from them. The game was coming to an end, and they were tied.

40 – 40.

"Come on! If you don't get a touchdown in the next three minutes, I'll personally kill you both!" she pulled at her hair, which was no longer in a ponytail. The people in the booth with her slowly inched away in the other direction. Good thing the people doing the actual play by play were in another room, or else Lucy would've given herself away a long time ago.

At first she thought that she wanted to walk out onto the field before the game and reunite with Natsu and Gray there, but then she decided not to. It would just distract them the whole game, and that wasn't fair. So at the last minute, she changed her plans to wait until after the game.

Gray now had the ball, and he was sprinting to the end zone. He managed to evade people who were trying to stop him, even narrowly escaping a tackle from Sting. Natsu was hot on his heels, probably jealous that he was going to get the winning point. But still, he was backing him up. If they didn't get to that end zone soon, Lucy wasn't going to have hair anymore.

A last minute attempt was made to stop Gray by Rouge, but he pushed right through his tackle and into the end zone. They won! Fairy Tail won!

"Yes! That was amazing!" Lucy stood up and cheered, she was just like any other fan now.

Confetti rained down on the field, the guys all tackled Gray into a man hug. Gray was presented with the trophy, which was promptly snatched away by Natsu, which was then taken by Laxus.

The roar of the crowd was deafening, and it took everything in Lucy's will power not to run down there and engulf those two in a hug. After the celebrating, the press, and everything else, the teams finally retreated to their respective locker rooms.

Lucy pulled her hair back into a pony tail again, and ran in the same direction.

* * *

"You punks are lucky! Next time, Sabertooth might be making that final touchdown. But still, we won! Free booze on me tonight at the pub, you all better be there," Laxus was holding his trophy proudly, and the guys were ecstatic. "Party starts in an hour!"

Everyone was laughing and cheering as they undressed, deciding to go out in their football uniform, minus all the padding.

"Nice work Gray," Natsu clapped him on the back. "But just so you know, I still made more touchdowns then you."

"I made the winning touchdown, and that is not true! Let's go back and look at the play by play, I dare you!" they butted heads, ready to brawl with each other right there in the locker room.

"Do I hear fighting?!" Erza appeared in the door way, not caring about the undressing men.

"No, w-we're best buddies. R-right, Gray?" Natsu slung his arm over Gray's shoulder, smiling like an idiot.

"That's right, best pal!" Gray said through clenched teeth, the same stupid look on his face.

"Good. Nice work you guys, I am proud of you two. Now, let's go party until dawn," Erza pointed and stared off, like she was some hero or something.

"You guys go, I'll catch up," Natsu walked back towards his locker, Gray and Erza shooting him a concerned look. "I'm fine. I just need a second."

They nodded, and left with the rest of the players. Once he was alone, Natsu pulled out his photo of Lucy. She had this ridiculous smile on her face, it was totally adorable. He plopped down on the bench and sighed, staring at her photo.

"Hey Luce," he said. "I wish you could've been here today, it was a totally awesome game. Can you believe Gray made the winning touchdown though? Show off…" he stroked the picture gently, a sad smile on his face as he did so. "I really miss you Luce."

While he was talking to her picture, Lucy was leaning in the doorway of the locker rooms. Natsu's back was to her, and Lucy couldn't help but smile. She missed that mop of pink hair, and his voice. They had only been able to video chat or talk on the phone a handful of times, it was usually just emails.

"I miss you too, Natsu," she spoke up.

Natsu stiffened and his breath caught in his throat, but then he shook his head and laughed.

"No, it's just in my head," he turned back to her picture.

"That was one hell of a game you played, even if Gray made the winning touchdown," she crossed her arms, waiting to see when he would figure it out.

"Yeah, well, it can't be helped I guess. I might be losing my edge or something, I'm talking to a picture of you. And you're actually responding," he chuckled, and Lucy had to bite her tongue to keep from screaming at him. "I know this isn't real, but I'll ask anyways. When are you going to come home Luce?"

"A lot sooner than you think," she said. "Natsu, you idiot… turn around."

Slowly he did as he was told, eyes widening when he saw her. He dropped her picture, and scrambled to his feet. He jumped over benches and ran to her, Lucy fully stood up and grinned. She walked about two steps before he crashed into her, lifting her into his arms in a bear hug.

"Luce," he buried his face into her hair, breathing in her scent.

"I'm home Natsu, I'm home."

* * *

**So right off the bat I've got to give starfire credit for this wonderful reunion scene. I had a totally different idea in mind, but this was soooo much better. So thanks a million starfire, I hope you like it! Shout out time ;D **

**Lucy Fairymage - I love to write Lucy badass personally, its a lot of fun! I hope you like this chapter, and thanks for reviewing on all the other chapters!**

**FTlover - I hate mean Lisanna too, so don't worry. And yeah, I'm thinking about what I can do with either the brain damage thing or PTSD. I'll figure something out, don't worry! And I love long reviews, so thanks for leaving one! **

**AvrilHitachin - Yay, I'm glad you liked it! Haha, yeah... my inner fangirl gets the better of me ALL the time. I'll start squealing and stuff and my mom will just look at me like "ok..." **

**Naeda Beasly - Haha, I hope you liked it! **

**Dark-Otaku-One-Of-Many - Haha, I hope you liked it! **

**starfire - Credit goes to you for the reunion scene idea, thanks a bunch! I hope you liked the chapter :D**

**Person - I know what you mean, whenever I see a new chapter for a story that I love I'm like "YESH! I'M ALIVE!" lol. And yeah, I figured I would put in those nice people in there. Aww, thanks! You're making me blush ;3**

**TwerkingPandah - Haha, yeah ... she was wasn't she? I'm glad you think its amazing, it makes me feel awesome when you guys like it. **

**I'll see you all next chapter :D**


	6. Please Read - I'm SO SO Sorry!

GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN! GOMEN!

I am SO SO sorry! I've been super busy lately and I haven't had time to write! If any of you read my other FT story _"Pink Meets Blonde"_ the only reason I've been updating that somewhat recently is because I actually had an idea to write for that one. This next chapter for _"Army Girl"_ is complicated. I want to get it right and not rush it, you know? I don't mean to make you all wait so long, but I don't want to disappoint you.

I'm so busy because I was home-schooled for 9th grade on an online program, and I kind of got really far behind with winter horse season (its REALLY busy for horse people... yes I ride horses and yes it is a sport). So I'm trying to get my last 2 classes of my freshman year done, and I'm actually going back to high school for my 10th grade year. I pulled out of traditional school in 7th grade for bullying reasons and because I wanted to focus more on my horse riding career. But now I am a lonely hermit and I actually miss people so I am going to go back.

School starts on 8/18/14 so that is in 3 days... Did I mention I haven't finished 9th grade either? I have enough credits to enter 10th grade but I'll still be finishing my other classes online. On top of that, I have to enroll in another 2 classes online for 10th grade. This is because I am doing an early release program so I get out of school everyday at 12:15pm so I can still ride my horses. Plus I'm thinking about trying out for cross country... I'm also a green belt in Tae Kwon Do and I do that 3 nights a week. I'm a crazy person for wanting to join another sport, huh?

If you have read through this all, here is a pie! You deserve one after I dumped all of my life drama on you guys. All of you are the world's most amazing readers ever! I love all of you guys, and I'm so sorry! I'm the worst author alive! I promise I will do my best to update soon, this story is NOT going to be discontinued - that I swear! I would hope to have the next chapter up by September, but I can't make that a promise. You guys are free to PM me and yell at me, I will take it. Please punch me, I've been a horrible author to you all! I ask you guys to please be patient with me, and I will do my best to make the next chapter worth the wait.

Thank you all for being amazing, I really don't deserve you guys...

With Love,

TheBigBadWolfxTheOncomingStorm


	7. Is it another AN? NO, IT'S CHAPTER 6!

**I'M BAAACCCCKKK! Did you guys miss me? Finally I finished my homework early (that's a first) and was suddenly stuck with inspiration. Hope you guys enjoy, I worked on this really hard for you :D**

**Please excuse any spelling/grammar errors, it's 1:30AM and after I finish typing I'm going to bed xD**

* * *

He honestly though he was going crazy. Or dreaming.

Or both.

There was Lucy, leaning against the doorway oh-so-casually while smirking at him.

He blinked. Then blinked again.

And when she was still there, still looking at him with those eyes he was longing to see again, he sprinted. She hardly had time to take two steps before he crashed into her, lifting her into his arms and gripping tight.

He buried his face into her hair, choking out her name and inhaling that scent that he hadn't smelled in seven years.

"I'm home, Natsu. I'm home," she whispered, tucking her face into the crook of his neck, the side that had the scar from an accident that he couldn't remember.

They stayed that way for minutes, just standing there holding each other. Both of them asking themselves if this was real or not, afraid it was just a dream. Lucy knew it was real, but she was still afraid that she would wake up in that damn hospital room. It had happened before, only for her to blink and then all of the sudden be staring at a white ceiling. Tears would follow after; her heart aching for her loved ones.

Natsu's eyes slowly leaked tears that dripped into her honey-gold hair. He could tell the muscle difference in her body, feeling her petite but curvaceous frame thorough the camouflage decorated uniform she was wearing.

"Please… Please just tell me this is real," Natsu asked, his voice shaking as he clenched his eyes as if that would stop him from shattering.

"I hope to hell it is," Lucy smiled, happy tears making Natsu's neck wet, then running down to his shirt. "I don't know if I could go on if it wasn't."

Both of them slowly pulled apart, still holding onto each other's arms. They just stared at each other, cocoa brown vs. onyx.

"I missed you," her grin became bigger, as if it engulfed her ears and spread to the edges of the room. Her eyes shining with a happiness that couldn't be described in words, tears rolling down her cheeks only to meet at her chin and then fall to the floor below.

"I missed you too," his mouth matched hers, his unnaturally sharp canines were prominent, his eyes that could compare to obsidian spoke a thousand different languages of joy. "When did you get back?"

"Yesterday, but I wanted to surprise you at the game today. It was wonderful by the way, you played amazingly."

He was a bit sad she waited an extra day, but he couldn't dwell on it. She was here now and that's what mattered.

"You were watching?"

"Mhm," she nodded, her hair bouncing in its ponytail as she did so. "I was in the announcers booth, hiding from you mostly. It was hard for me not to track you down, but I restrained myself."

"You meanie," he chuckled. "I wouldn't have been mad if you did."

"Me either, but I wanted to wait until after words. The video was meant for you guys to think I was still overseas, and then I would surprise the shit out of you at the game."

"It worked," he shook his head, his tears being flung into the air while he couldn't help but laugh again. "I knew, you know. I knew you would never tell us if you were coming home, I knew you would just show up somewhere and scare the crap out of us."

"That's because you know me so well," she threw herself into his arms again, nearly choking him. "God Natsu, I missed you so much," she cried, her breaths turning into heaves. Sobs escaped her lips which donned the world's largest smile only a moment ago, her eyes which were laughing in pure ecstasy were now tightly shut as tears spilled from them for a different reason.

"Me too," he bit his tongue hard to keep himself from mimicking her actions, holding her as she cried out her frustrations from seven years. He hand an arm around her back, but put one hand to her head, stroking her hair to help comfort her. He was holding her up from the ground, standing to his full height. Somehow he started to sway back and forth ever so slightly, almost rocking her while humming a tune to an old lullaby song he knew.

His attempt to not crack as well was quickly defeated when he found tears pouring from his eyes faster then before, the strongest urge to scream fought his throat, which was still humming the tune.

It won.

There they were, both crying hysterically as they leaned on one other for support. The cold metal walls of the locker room echoed their voices, making their sobs ring louder in their ears. But they didn't care. They were together again after so long, they couldn't do anything but cry.

They didn't know how long it was, but they continued until their vocal cords felt like they were about to rip, their sobs dying down together until they were mostly whimpers with the occasional cry. It was like steel wool had scrubbed both of them clean, breaking down the walls they had worked so hard to put up and leaving them raw but feeling so much better.

Natsu slowly pried Lucy off of him, her arms resisting but eventually giving in. Her eyes were blood shut like his, her face was bright red from crying so hard for so long.

"Luce," he whispered, his voice strained and rough from screaming so loud but somehow still gentle.

"N – Natsu," her voice was just like his, but she couldn't help the involuntary gasps of breath that shook her whole body.

She was so beautiful. Even standing there crying like a child that didn't get their way, she was beautiful. Tears flooded her eyes, snot was starting to drip from her nose, her mouth was in a tortured grimace as she heaved, her entire face rivaled Erza's hair color, but she was still beautiful. She would always be beautiful to him.

He had to tell her, but he didn't trust his voice to work.

So he did the only thing he could think of. The only thing that felt right to him.

He kissed her.

He kissed her with so much passion; she was surprised at first, but soon melted into the kiss. Love radiated from his lips, which tasted like salt from tears and the faint trace of oranges from a sports drink he must've had earlier.

His tongue found its way into her mouth, and she responded with just as must fierceness. They weren't fighting for dominance though; they were expressing their love.

Centuries later, their kiss turned from hot and raging passion to a slow and gentle but loving one, they were perfectly in sync with each other. They were apologizing, cursing, screaming, laughing, and loving each other in one gesture. They stopped a few moments later, keeping their eyes closed but pressing their foreheads together.

"I love you," he could hardly speak, but kept continuing. "I love you so much. You have no idea. Lucy, I'm in love with you."

"Natsu," her voice sounded her vocal cords were mauled, but she somehow made it louder so he could hear her. "I love you too. I've always loved you; I hated leaving you seven years ago. I'm so sorry; I'm in love with you Natsu. I truly am."

"You don't need to say you're sorry," he pulled his forehead away from hers, opening his eyes to see her brown ones watching him intently. "I was never mad at you."

"I'm still sorry. I regretted leaving you guys so much, but I mostly regretted leaving you," her voice gave out on the last word, it disappeared into the stale and sweaty air around them.

"Please don't. You did what you thought was right; you didn't want to marry someone you didn't love. I'm glad you didn't, I don't know what I would've done. All that matters is that you're home, ok?" he gave her a soft smile, which she returned with a nod.

"Let's go, I think Erza will kill me if she ever found out I knew you were home and didn't tell everyone," he put his arm around her, resting it on the small of her back, guiding her out of the locker room and towards the parking lot.

They walked towards his car, a rental SUV while he was here, Natsu guiding Lucy into the passenger seat before getting into the driver's seat himself. He started the car, pulling out of the stadium before driving off to the hotel.

He stole glances at Lucy every few moments, thinking she might dissolve into thin air or something. She held her hand out to him; he took one hand off of the steering wheel to hold it.

After a bit he pulled into the hotel parking lot, taking Lucy up to the room he was given. She sat down on the bed while he made two cups of tea, handing one to her when he was done.

She took a sip of the warm liquid, enjoying the tea soothing her sore throat. She raised her eyebrows to Natsu, who was sitting next to her, and gestured to her cup, noticing that he made it with two sugars like she loved.

"I remembered," he nodded, and then took a sip of his own cup. "I could never forget. Two sugars with black tea, one with green tea, and honey with ginger tea."

"Thank you Natsu," she spoke, founding the tea had restored her voice.

"Anytime," he smiled.

She polished off her cup a few minutes later, setting it down on the bedside table.

"I'm just – I'm just going to use the restroom," she said, making her way towards the door in the room, which could only be the restroom.

Her hands immediately found the sink, tuning on the cold water and washing her face repeatedly. She pressed her face into a fluffy towel, and then looked at her reflection in the mirror.

Other then her face still being a bit red and puffy, she looked normal. Hopefully it would go down before she saw everyone else. She walked out of the bathroom, seeing Natsu waiting for her in a pair of jeans and a red shirt.

"Ready?" he held his arm out to her, his eyes looking her over to see if she was ok or not.

"Ready," she responded, her voice a bit hoarse but strong and firm. She walked towards him, his arm taking her and holding her in a side hug before resting itself on her shoulders.

"Then lets go," he smiled at her before walking out the door with her, down the hall, to the elevator, into the car, where he drove towards the bar where everyone was partying.

* * *

**Gomen, I know it's short compared to all the other chapters. But I figured that a shorter chapter was better then nothing. **

**So I don't know if I'll be able to update regularly, but I'll try my best. **

**I'm not going to do shout outs because I'm really tired, but just know that I love all of you guys! Thank you so much for your support, it means the world to me :D**

**Let me know what you guys think in a review!**


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